Overview & Reviews

A relative newcomer to the American marketplace, Hyundai is a Korean automaker with a product line that has improved greatly over the past decade. Hyundai cars and SUVs provide a high level of content for an affordable price, and are currently backed by one of the industry's longest warranties.

In 1947, Chung Ju Yung founded the Hyundai Civil Engineering Company. Mere months later, the outfit was bombed in the Korean War. However, the company regained its footing to distinguish itself as one of Korea's leading construction enterprises during the 1950s.

By the late 1960s, Chung had turned his attention to the automobile industry. The Korean government at that time believed that it made more sense to import vehicles than produce them domestically, and had made its opinion known. Still, Chung opted to follow his own convictions, and in 1967, he founded the Hyundai Motor Company.

The company quickly established an alliance with one of the industry's oldest automakers, signing a two-year contract with Ford in 1968 to share assembly technology. Hyundai's first car, the Cortina, was created from that partnership. The manufacturer's first car to be designed and built in Korea was the compact Pony (although the car was based on Japanese technology courtesy of Mitsubishi). The vehicle made its debut in 1974, and the following year Hyundai began exporting it to overseas markets.

Hyundai entered the U.S. market in 1986 with the introduction of its subcompact Excel. The car was an immediate hit, with its supreme affordability being a primary selling point. More than 100,000 Excels were sold stateside in the first seven months. By 1988, Hyundai had begun to produce cars using its own technology. The midsize Sonata was the first fruit borne of this endeavor.

Unfortunately, Hyundai's nascent image was soon tarnished by the poor durability and reliability of its vehicles. Sales tanked. However, rather than abandon the American market in the '90s, Hyundai chose to invest heavily in new product designs and improvements in overall quality and reliability. In 1998, Hyundai also purchased Kia, another Korean automaker, to expand its business and economies of scale.

It all started to pay off by the start of the new millennium, with the 2001 Elantra in particular showing massive improvements in overall quality, reliability and performance. Other models followed suit and the desirability of Hyundai cars increased sharply. Providing an extraordinarily long warranty period didn't hurt either.

Today's lineup is indicative of Hyundai's complete turnaround. Hyundai has a vehicle for nearly every segment, including the economical Accent subcompact, the popular Elantra compact, the midsize Sonata sedan (also available as a hybrid), sporty Genesis and Veloster coupes and a couple of stylish SUVs. Hyundai has also expanded into the entry-level and premium-level luxury sedan markets with its Genesis and Equus sedans. Having gone from being the butt of late-night TV jokes in the 1980s to a well-respected manufacturer of quality vehicles, Hyundai has created a very inspiring rags-to-riches story.

User Reviews:

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  2012 Sonata Limited Turbo with Nav (Excellent Value) - 2012 Hyundai Sonata
  By zoomzoom27 - August 1 - 1:11 am

  I bought this car used about six months ago, and I must say it feels and drives like a much more expensive car then the one I paid for. I have owned BMWs, Nissans and Toyotas in the past and I feel this is a better car. The turbo 4 cylinder engine really does feel like a V6, I have a V6 Toyota Venza and I know what I am talking about. This thing Just takes off without any fuss, granted the engine only had 16K miles when I bought this car. Anyone planning on buying turbo model, keep in mind, this car requires 91 octane or higher, and synthetic oil changes, which is little more mony, but it will keep your car working for years to come. This is my 1st hyundai product and it gets 5 from me.

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  Best Standard Features for The Price - 2008 Hyundai Elantra
  By Jim Ripka - July 31 - 6:30 pm

  Everything I wanted on a car came as standard features on the SE model. All four wheels have ABS disk brakes. The electronic stability control and side air bags make this one of the safest compacts. The ride is smooth and quiet and the design makes it look like a more expensive car. My neighbor asked if I paid over $30,000.

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  bills tib - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By bill burn - July 31 - 2:00 am

  GREAT CAR great style fun to drive great color red even the 4 cyl is pretty quick

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  Pleased - 2004 Hyundai XG350
  By Kenneth - July 31 - 2:00 am

  Ive found the car performs at or above expectations considering the automobiles the XG350 was originally compared to. After nine months of owning the car, I have had no need service needs and experienced no mechanical defects. After driving the Maxima, Camry, and Tarus, the XG350 handles as well or better, is more comfortable (Im 63" tall), has a few more bells and whistles, and is a more attactive automobile. That coupled with the warrently will result in me buying another XG350 when the time comes.

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  great car - 2004 Hyundai Elantra
  By blahblah - July 31 - 2:00 am

  Ive owned it for only a little while and love to drive it. when you look at what other companys are offering in this price range and what you get with a gt elantra its a no brainer. Thats even without the warrenty.

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  not just affordable - 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe
  By sold on hyundai - July 31 - 2:00 am

  when i first looked at the santa fe i thought the car was nice and that made me interested..after learning about the warranty and seeing quality for myself i was sold..i have made one of the better choices of my life..

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  best car ever driven - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By greatestcar - July 30 - 10:00 am

  If you havent driven this car yet you are missing the boat. This is by far the best "sports car" that I have ever owned. I thought that it was funny that someone who has never driven the car or owned a Hyundai could have bad things to say about Hyundai in general.

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  2003 Tiburon - 2003 Hyundai Tiburon
  By sublime - July 30 - 10:00 am

  I have this car for a couple months now and just love driving it. I used to own an eclipse and like this car the same. I like the tilted console in the eclipse but as far as money goes, you cannot beat this car. Less than 20 grand fully loaded. It rides smoothly and people seem to notice, either that or its the standard 8 sub thats installed. It doesnt pound bass, Im not saying that, but it also doesnt make it sound like the side panels are gonna fall off. As far as the car goes I have no feelings of I wish with the car because it came with so many features for so cheap.

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  Cant beat the value - 2002 Hyundai Elantra
  By teamjdc - July 30 - 10:00 am

  The fit and finish is as good as, or better than, any car in its class. The standard features beat the pants off of the competition and the price speaks for itself.

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  Accent is the best! - 1997 Hyundai Accent
  By ELISSANB - July 30 - 2:00 am

  The 4 dr Accent was the best vehicle I have owned. It is so much fun to drive and has never given me any problems beyond routine maintenance. I have had my car for 4 years, and it will be hard to part with it.